Tarot is best used as a tool for self-discovery, healing, growth, empowerment, and liberation. Tarot archetypes provide the reader with a window into present circumstances and future potential. But what if that window only opened up on a world that was white, European, and heterosexual? The interpretations of the tarot that have been passed down through tradition presuppose a commonality and normalcy among humanity. At the root of card meanings are archetypes that we accept without questioning. But at what point do archetypes become stereotypes?

Humanity is diverse--culturally, spiritually, sexually. Tarot has the power to serve a greater population, with the right keys to unlock the tarot's deeper meanings. In Queering the Tarot, Cassandra Snow deconstructs the meanings of the 78 cards explaining the ways in which each card might be interpreted against the norm. Queering the Tarot explores themes of sexuality, coming out, gender and gender-queering, sources of oppression and empowerment, and many other topics especially familiar to not-straight folks. Cassandra's identity-based approach speaks directly to those whose identity is either up in the air or consuming the forefront of their consciousness. It also speaks to those struggling with mental illness or the effects of trauma, all seekers looking for personal affirmation that who they are is okay.

"As a straight, middle-class Baby Boomer, I admit to being slightly uncomfortable with the word “queer”. It is also true that I have made up my mind not to die of mental rigidity. So a few years back, I began consciously trying on other people’s perspectives and I have come to understand that the LBGTQ+ community speaks the word clearly as a powerful badge of honor. For the moment, as Beth Maiden points out in her brilliant foreword to this book, the queer experience is substantially different from the hetero experience. Both from that perspective, and from the perspective of a long time student of all things tarot, I herald the release of this book and the new dimensions that it adds to the magical symbolism of the cards. In the page-and-a-half “Word” that follows Maiden’s “Foreword”, Cassandra Snow says that the word “queer” has come to mean the intention to create a community where “others” (all those who need a safer space) are welcomed with open arms. I can think of no better definition of the symbolism of the tarot. Snow is asking The Fool to “walk in another man’s shoes” along the path to enlightenment. The lessons learned are invaluable." --Anna Jedrziewski, Retailing Insights, May/June 2019 - Retailing Insights

"Tarot, as practiced by modern readers, is an exploration into one's psyche and life experience. Snow has blogged for years on the website Little Red Tarot about reinterpreting the tarot to be more inclusive of the LGBTQ community. Expanding these earlier writings and using the images of the Urban Tarot deck, they have created a resource that speaks to queer culture and the inherent issues of difference. Although the Urban Tarot deck is based on Aleister Crowley's Thoth Tarot (which diverges from decks based on the Rider-Waite-Smith cards), traditional tarot readers will appreciate this perceptive take on each of the major and minor arcana. The emphasis of Snow's interpretations becomes welcoming, relatable, and compassionate to those in the gender nonconforming community, as she deals with concerns previously ignored or judged. VERDICT Snow creates a safe divinatory space for a community likely to have suffered abuse or trauma, or who don't relate to the dominant cis culture in an expanding and affirming read for all levels of tarot enthusiasts." —Library Journal, Janet Tapper, Univ. of Western States Lib., Portland, OR - Library Journal